ESPN had back-to-back nights of good numbers for its Major League Baseball coverage. In other news, Fox Sports 1 also had a big increase for MLB action, and NASCAR’s Xfinity Series scored its largest audience on FS1 since March.
Strong Performance For Sunday, Monday, Night Baseball
- The Tigers/Cardinals Sunday Night Baseball game drew 2.3 million viewers on ESPN, up a season-high 63% from Cardinals/Pirates last year (1.4M) and up 60% from Angels/White Sox in 2013 (1.5M). Five of the seven Sunday night games have had an increase in viewership, with four of those five up by at least 40%. The following night, the Cardinals/Mets Monday Night Baseball game drew 1.0 million — easily the most-watched non-Sunday telecast of the season on any network. (via ShowBuzz Daily [1], [2])
Strong Gains For Pirates/Cubs on FS1
- Saturday’s Pirates/Cubs Major League Baseball game drew 583,000 viewers on Fox Sports 1, up 51% from Giants/Dodgers last year (386K). Braves/Marlins drew 409,000 earlier in the day; there was no comparable window last year. (via ShowBuzz Daily)
Xfinity Series Scores Largest FS1 Audience Since March
- NASCAR Xfinity Series racing from Iowa drew 1.2 million viewers on FS1 Sunday afternoon, the series’ largest audience on the network since Fontana in March (1.4M). Last year’s viewership was not immediately available. (via ShowBuzz Daily)
